10 best excuses for coming to work late

Some people wake up each morning before the alarm rings, glad to see the glowing sun and excited to start the day.

They arrive to work whistling and are hard at work before most people even arrive. These rare creatures, also known as "morning people," are incomprehensible to those of you whose morning routines are exercises in panic and frustration.

A lot more people belong in that latter group than you might have guessed. Fifteen percent of workers admit to arriving late at least once a week, according to a recent CareerBuilder.com survey.

Why are so many of us running late?

You might be surprised that the snooze button is not the primary culprit of tardiness.

Thirty-two percent of workers attribute their late arrivals to traffic gridlock. Seventeen percent claim a lack of sleep is the reason, and 7 percent have trouble arriving on time because they need to get their children ready for school or day care.

Other issues, like forgetting something at home or not feeling well, are also popular.

Fortunately for late arrivers, 43 percent of hiring managers won't count tardiness against you as long as you meet deadlines and turn in good work.

Of course, some managers feel differently and will hand you a pink slip if you're late several times within a year.

Use your imagination

More than 27 percent of hiring managers say they are skeptical of employees' excuses for showing up late. It turns out their doubt is warranted: 24 percent of all employees decide to make up a fake excuse rather than tell the truth.

What does this mean to you?

If you're sitting in a traffic jam watching the minutes tick away and you've decided honesty isn't the best policy for you, think of a believable and acceptable reason you're walking in late.

After all, if you were a hiring manager who heard any of these 10 real-life excuses for being late, you'd be suspicious, too.

1. While rowing across the river to work, I got lost in the fog.

2. Someone stole all my daffodils.

3. I had to go audition for American Idol.

4. My ex-husband stole my car so I couldn't drive to work.

5. My route to work was shut down by a Presidential motorcade.

6. I have transient amnesia and couldn't remember my job.

7. I was indicted for securities fraud this morning.

8. The line was too long at Starbucks.

9. I was trying to get my gun back from the police.

10. I didn't have money for gas because all of the pawn shops were closed.

Be a crowd-pleaser

When it comes to punctuality, your best bet is to take cues from your company's culture. If everyone is diligently working when you drag yourself through the door each morning, then you probably stand out.

However, if everyone filters in at their own pace between 8:45 and 9:15, then an occasional late arrival will probably go unnoticed.

Habitual lateness, on the other hand, will help neither your career prospects nor your workplace relationships. For one thing, your boss and co-workers are relying on you to be at work when you're scheduled to arrive; you don't want to disappoint them.

Also, just because nobody confronts you about your tardiness, that doesn't mean no one's watching the clock and forming an opinion about you or your work ethic.

These judgments can damage you when it comes to performance reviews and promotions. Don't let a few extra minutes of sleep cost you your reputation -- or worse, your job.
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I think in my profession (software engineering), the end result is what matters. There are still a lot of managers who are traditional, but for the most part, it's more performance based. If you get your work done and it's good, then they usually don't care.

I think in my profession (software engineering), the end result is what matters. There are still a lot of managers who are traditional, but for the most part, it's more performance based. If you get your work done and it's good, then they usually don't care.

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Bingo.. that was part of the draw for me.. I am a gent that hammers away at something gets the bulk of it done, refine it and then set it on cruise for a little while.. if you write your code clean enough and with enough fore thought to anticipate the changes upcomming.. it makes life easier.. like comming in a bit late or needing a day off here or there.. if you perform up to the expected level and overdeliver a little.. it goes along way in the fringe benefits.. but on the administration side.. I make up for it with late night deployments and off hour work.. take the good with the bad I guess.. eh.

I think in my profession (software engineering), the end result is what matters. There are still a lot of managers who are traditional, but for the most part, it's more performance based. If you get your work done and it's good, then they usually don't care.

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I am in SE as well. At our company, we set goals, and if those goals are met, we are very flexible with the hours someone works.

"Uh, boss....I'm late because of this herd of Buffalo that were blocking the road. :lol: No, I don't have a written note for being late, but you can look at the big dent in the drivers side door where Mama Bison signed my car." :shock:

I once had a girl page me and said she couldn't come to work because she was having car problems. So I call her house and ask her where she lived so I could pick her up. Her response, "Uh, .......Uh........, I'll call you back in five minutes.

She called me back and said she didn't feel good so she wasn't coming in. I told her not to bother anyway because she was fired. :lol:

I once had a girl page me and said she couldn't come to work because she was having car problems. So I call her house and ask her where she lived so I could pick her up. Her response, "Uh, .......Uh........, I'll call you back in five minutes.

She called me back and said she didn't feel good so she wasn't coming in. I told her not to bother anyway because she was fired. :lol:

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Too bad you didn't drive by her house. May have seen something very interesting.

"Uh, boss....I'm late because of this herd of Buffalo that were blocking the road. :lol: No, I don't have a written note for being late, but you can look at the big dent in the drivers side door where Mama Bison signed my car." :shock:

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The funny thing is, I knew someone in California who was late because of cows in the road. Most people think California is this place by the beach, but most of it is quite rural. It's just most people live close to the coast.

The worst stink I ever encountered was on I-15 between San Bernadino and Anaheim on the way to Disneyland a few years ago. We passed a dairy farm that had to have been 5 miles long beside the highway, and the smell was awful. Had to have been 5000 dairy cattle in there.

I think in my profession (software engineering), the end result is what matters. There are still a lot of managers who are traditional, but for the most part, it's more performance based. If you get your work done and it's good, then they usually don't care.

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I am in SE as well. At our company, we set goals, and if those goals are met, we are very flexible with the hours someone works.

The worst stink I ever encountered was on I-15 between San Bernadino and Anaheim on the way to Disneyland a few years ago. We passed a dairy farm that had to have been 5 miles long beside the highway, and the smell was awful. Had to have been 5000 dairy cattle in there.

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Bob that had to have been Norco, I pass through it everyday for work and the stink is pretty stinky, but then again it reminds me of WI, not because of the stink/stench just seeing the cows.

Were you staying in San Bernardino? We dont live to far from there, more to the south.

I know a person at my work thats always late when coming in, but the company doesnt seem to mind this at all, now if hard working person would do this, they would get fired. This company doesnt make sense to me at all.

Also I know lots of people in this company that shouldnt have their title because they are lazy and dont care. I for one have NEVER been late nor have called in sick for over 3 years or have been sick. Knock on wood.

A mechanical engineer, an electrical engineer and a software engineer are travelling in an old car when all of the sudden the car backfires and comes to a halt.

The mechanical engineer says "Ah! It's probably a problem with the valves, or the piston!".

The electrical engineer says "Nonsense! It's most probably a problem with the spark plugs or the battery!".

The software engineer says "How about we all get out of the car, and get back in again".

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Heh. I heard this joke with the Software Engineer being a microsoft employee and the others being employees of real software companies (you know, companies that don't write software that requires you to reboot all the time).

I for one have NEVER been late nor have called in sick for over 3 years or have been sick. Knock on wood.

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Thats pretty good. Most people I work with can't go 2 months without calling in sick. The next time I call in sick will be my first.

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This girl that I work with from time to time, is always late everyday, shes always sick and calls in, she also make so many mistakes, yet in the bosses eyes she cant do anything wrong. Now if I were to do those things I think I would get fired. All we can do as employees is do our job the best way that we can and follow all the rules, if we dont get promoted then so be it, at least I can say I did everything that I could in the position I hold.

I for one have NEVER been late nor have called in sick for over 3 years or have been sick. Knock on wood.

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Thats pretty good. Most people I work with can't go 2 months without calling in sick. The next time I call in sick will be my first.

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This girl that I work with from time to time, is always late everyday, shes always sick and calls in, she also make so many mistakes, yet in the bosses eyes she cant do anything wrong. Now if I were to do those things I think I would get fired. All we can do as employees is do our job the best way that we can and follow all the rules, if we dont get promoted then so be it, at least I can say I did everything that I could in the position I hold.

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Personally I don't tend to agree with this notion. I believe you should always try and maximise your opportunities for promotion. I don't mean just through your performance, punctuality or efficiency, but also through the subtle psychological games and powerplays between employees and employers.

For example, contrary to belief, it is not a good idea to always finish your work early. This gives the notion to management that you can easily handle an increased work load, and this can often go against you if you do happen to be late (people always remember the negatives). You don't work for the sake of doing work, you work to get paid.

Personally I don't tend to agree with this notion. I believe you should always try and maximise your opportunities for promotion. I don't mean just through your performance, punctuality or efficiency, but also through the subtle psychological games and powerplays between employees and employers.

For example, contrary to belief, it is not a good idea to always finish your work early. This gives the notion to management that you can easily handle an increased work load, and this can often go against you if you do happen to be late (people always remember the negatives). You don't work for the sake of doing work, you work to get paid.

My motto is, when it comes to money and health, you play to win.

That's the way I see things anyway, so take it with a grain of salt.

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You know what's bad is I think that Seinfeld episode where George always looked like he was overworked and upset had truth to it.

Walk around the office in a hurry carrying some papers in your hand. When someone says hello, nod, but keep walking like you're really busy. People will think you work hard.

Look stressed too. I agree never to finish your work early, but finish it on time. If you're going to be early, do something to delay yourself.